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Trends in key Indian state election show Modi's alliance sweeping
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Election Commission trends at mid-day in the eastern Indian state of Bihar show Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its alliance partner headed for a sweep.
Vote counting began at 08:00 local time [02:30 GMT] and will go on for several hours before the results will be called.
Polls were held on 6 and 11 November and the state witnessed a record voter turnout of 66.91% - the highest since Bihar's first elections in 1951, the commission (EC) said.
The election was held after a controversial revision of electoral rolls that the opposition alleged would exclude genuine voters and give Modi's party an edge - a charge both the BJP and EC denied.
Several exit polls have predicted a victory for the BJP's alliance, which includes Janata Dal (United) or JD(U) as the prominent partner. The two parties currently rule the state together, with JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar as the outgoing chief minister.
Their main rival is a coalition of India's main opposition Congress party, the regional Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and several smaller parties.
The polls have also witnessed the entry of a new political party led by Prashant Kishor, a former political consultant who has in the past worked with both the BJP and the Congress.
By mid-day, counting was still going on and no results had been declared, but the Election Commission tally showed the BJP-JD(U) alliance - together with a few smaller partners - leading in at least 190 seats in the 243-seat assembly. The RJD-Congress alliance are leading in 42 seats.
As counting progresses, results can change in some seats, but it's highly unlikely that the RJD-Congress alliance can claw its way back into the reckoning.
The Bihar polls serve as a precursor to several other key state state elections next year in West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, where the BJP is not in power and has struggled to make inroads.
Bihar, with more than 74 million voters, is India's poorest state, with millions migrating to other parts of India for jobs. It is also among the few states in India where Modi's party has not managed to form a government yet on its own.
Nearly half of the voters are women, and the state - which has seen a steady increase in female voters over the years - recorded its highest female voter turnout in history at 71.6% this year.
Both alliances have offered financial assistance schemes to woo women.
The election was conducted after a controversial voter list revision carried out by India's Election Commission a few months ago. The commission released a list of 74.2 million voters in September, weeding out 4.7 million names.
The exercise - which is now taking place in 12 states and federally administered territories across India - was sharply criticised by the opposition.
They accused the commission of dropping many voters, especially Muslims, to aid Modi's party. Both the BJP and the Election Commission have denied such allegations.
This election is also closely watched because it could be the last one to see active participation from two regional stalwarts - Chief Minister Nitish Kumar of JD(U) and RJD's Lalu Prasad Yadav - who have shaped Bihar's politics for almost four decades.
The political rivals, both in their 70s, are said to be in poor health. They have on occasion joined hands to stay in power.
Kumar is one of the state's most influential leaders and has led the state government for most of the past two decades.
Yadav, who was the state's chief minister in the past, is currently out on bail after being convicted in corruption cases. His son Tejashwi has been projected as the chief ministerial candidate for the opposition alliance.
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Source: BBC
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